Charting how Max Verstappen’s bid to win a fourth successive world title has become rather more complicated in recent months amid Lando Norris and McLaren’s surge; Formula 1 returns at the United States Grand Prix in Austin, live on Sky Sports F1 from October 18-20
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On the Sky Sports F1 Podcast, Nico Rosberg says the battle for the drivers’ championship could ‘go down to the wire’ between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris
With six rounds of Formula 1’s thrilling 2024 season remaining, look back at a race-by-race recap of Max Verstappen’s battle with Lando Norris for the drivers’ title.
After three weekends off, the season will resume with the United States Grand Prix in Austin from October 18-20 – live on Sky Sports F1 – with everything still to play for.
It appeared as though Verstappen would dominate the season after a strong start from Red Bull, but momentum is on Norris’ side, with the McLaren driver having taken points out of the world championship leader at the last four races.
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Verstappen is bidding for a fourth consecutive F1 title, whereas Norris is looking to become world champion for the first time.
After a pause for breath, a thrilling climax is in store with two triple-headers to finish the season. Following the Sprint weekend in Austin, the Mexico City Grand Prix (October 25-27) and Sao Paulo Grand Prix (November 1-3) follow.
After another mini break, the Las Vegas Grand Prix (November 22-24), Qatar Grand Prix (November 29-December 1) and Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (December 6-8) will bring the season to a close, with every session from each race live on Sky Sports F1.
Bahrain GP: Verstappen makes perfect start
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Highlights of the F1 2024 season opener at the Bahrain Grand Prix
Verstappen picked up where he left off in 2023 with a lights-to-flag victory from pole position, plus the fastest lap of the race as he led team-mate Sergio Perez in a Red Bull one-two.
Norris started seventh and finished in sixth – 48.4 seconds behind Verstappen, a huge performance margin that nobody thought would be overhauled this year…
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 26-8 NORRIS
Saudi Arabian GP: Verstappen dominates again
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Anthony Davidson explains why Lando Norris didn’t receive a penalty for his jump start at the Saudi Arabian GP
A week later, Verstappen claimed another dominant victory during which the outcome never appeared to be in doubt.
The Dutchman ignored off-track noise created by a public feud between his father Jos Verstappen and Red Bull team principal Christian Horner to lead home another one-two from Perez.
Norris, who initially appeared to have jumped the start but was not penalised, actually led his first laps of the season after not pitting under an early Safety Car but would only finish eighth as the strategy gamble failed to pay off.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 51-12 NORRIS
Australian GP: Norris on podium as Verstappen retires
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Max Verstappen limps back into the garage and is out of the Australian Grand Prix as smoke pours out of his Red Bull!
Verstappen was attempting to equal his own record 10-race winning streak as he started from pole position in Melbourne, but completed only three laps before the brakes on his Red Bull caught fire and forced him to retire.
Norris took his first podium of the season in third behind the Ferrari one-two led by Carlos Sainz.
Charles Leclerc undercut Norris during the first round of pit stops and the McLaren driver couldn’t fight back to second place.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 51-27 NORRIS
Japanese GP: Verstappen back on top
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Highlights of the Japanese Grand Prix from the Suzuka Circuit
Verstappen returned to winning ways to head a resounding Red Bull one-two at Suzuka, expertly managing two launches off the line as a restart was needed following a red flag on the first lap for a crash between Alex Albon and Daniel Ricciardo.
Norris started third but was leapfrogged by both Ferraris during the race and finished fifth, with the MCL38 at this point still lacking the raw pace to hold off the red cars.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 77-37 NORRIS
Chinese GP: Norris rues Sprint as Verstappen wins Grand Prix
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Max Verstappen secured another win for Red Bull at the Chinese Grand Prix
Norris started on Sprint pole in Shanghai but, in what would be the start of an unwanted streak, failed to retain the lead at the first corner as Lewis Hamilton pounced to run him off the road and down the field.
Norris finished sixth, while Verstappen overtook Alonso and Hamilton to win the Sprint.
In the main event, Verstappen cruised to a fourth win of 2024, but there was encouragement for McLaren as Norris took second, and managed to finish 13.7 seconds behind the Red Bull.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 110-58 NORRIS
Miami GP: Norris’ maiden win
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Lando Norris celebrated his first win in style, crowd surfing with his McLaren team as well as being congratulated by rival drivers
It was in Florida where the course of the 2024 Formula 1 season really started to change, as McLaren introduced a major set of upgrades to the MCL38.
While the car was improved, a timely Safety Car was needed to vault Norris into the lead before he held off Verstappen in a tense restart, and then eased away to claim a first F1 win in his 110th race start.
The result sparked wonderful scenes of celebration, but few thought they were witnessing the start of a title battle.
Verstappen still actually scored more points across the weekend, having won Saturday’s Sprint from pole as Norris retired after a first-lap collision with Fernando Alonso.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 136-83 NORRIS
Emilia Romagna GP: Verstappen fends off Norris
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Verstappen narrowly held off Norris to claim the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix
Verstappen pipped the McLarens of Oscar Piastri and Norris to pole by less than a tenth of a second in Imola, after being crucially aided by a slipstream from Haas driver Nico Hulkenberg in Q3.
The Dutchman appeared to be cruising to victory after opening a lead of 7.5 seconds to Norris with 20 laps to go, but suddenly the McLaren began rapidly closing in.
Both drivers pushed incredibly hard but Verstappen held on to win by less than a second, with there being little doubt that Norris would have only needed a lap or two more to overhaul his rival.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 161-101 NORRIS
Monaco GP: Norris gains ground
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Verstappen said Red Bull’s strategy got ruined after the red flag and turned into a ‘boring’ Monaco GP
The limited overtaking opportunities at F1’s most famous circuit mean that qualifying is king in Monaco. Therefore, both Norris and Verstappen’s chances of victories appeared to be all but over when they qualified fourth and sixth respectively.
It was Norris who had more reason to be disappointed as his team-mate Oscar Piastri took second in both qualifying, suggesting he had failed to maximise the McLaren’s performance. Verstappen, on the other hand, had a car that simply couldn’t cope with the bumpy kerbs of the street circuit.
Following a huge first-lap crash that enabled an early change of tyres, there was little action in the race as the top 10 finished where they had started, allowing Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc to finally win his home race.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 169-113 NORRIS
Canadian GP: Verstappen wins amid wet weather chaos
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Verstappen and Norris hilariously react to their battle out of the pits at the Canadian Grand Prix
Verstappen won a chaotic and gripping Canadian Grand Prix to leave Norris reflecting on what might have been after a race of high drama amid on-off rain in Montreal.
Norris twice led the race – the first time after overtaking both Verstappen and the Mercedes of George Russell – but had to settle for second after losing out under a Safety Car interruption, which some felt McLaren could have handled better.
A crucial error followed after that as Norris sought to reclaim his advantage, with Verstappen ultimately holding on to win by almost four seconds.
Norris and Russell both felt as though they had let victory slip away, with Verstappen’s calm and experience ultimately proving the difference.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 194-131 NORRIS
Spanish GP: Norris squanders pole advantage
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Watch as George Russell and Lando Norris battle for P2 at the Spanish Grand Prix
A second race in succession that Verstappen won despite not having the fastest car, much to the increasing frustration of Norris.
The McLaren driver’s annoyance this time was heightened by the fact that while he had achieved pole position for just the second time in F1 – and the first time in three years – his hard-won qualifying advantage lasted just a matter of yards as he was overtaken at the start by not only Verstappen but George Russell too, the Mercedes driver brilliantly sweeping past the front-row starters before the first corner.
And while Verstappen passed Russell to take the lead for himself by lap three, Norris remained bottled up behind the Mercedes for all the first stint. McLaren opted to run longer on either side of Norris’ two pit stops in order to come back at Verstappen at the end of the race and, while the strategy saw the Briton show strong pace and reclaim second, he ultimately ran out of laps to truly challenge for the win and took the chequered flag two seconds behind his Red Bull rival. Verstappen’s title lead was now out to 69 points.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 219-150 NORRIS
Austrian GP: The inevitable first collision?
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Watch new angles of Verstappen and Norris’ collision and aftermath that cost them both the lead at the Austrian Grand Prix
Sunday June 30, the Red Bull Ring, Lap 63, Turn Three. The moment the long-time good friends found out that it wouldn’t always be so easy to keep things cordial when fighting together at the front of the F1 grid.
What had appeared set to be a convincing Verstappen win was turned on its head by an uncharacteristically slow Red Bull pit stop which put Norris on the world champion’s tail for the race’s closing stint. Having already gone wheel-to-wheel on several occasions, with each driver complaining about the other’s tactics, the pair made costly contact with eight laps to go and both cars sustained damage that would end their respective victory hopes.
With a gleeful Russell picking up the pieces to end Mercedes’ 19-month victory drought, the damage to Norris’ car proved to be race-ending, although Verstappen was able to rejoin after repairs in the pits and took fifth place despite stewards handing him a 10s penalty for being at fault for the collision.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 237-156 NORRIS
British GP: Hamilton’s day, but McLaren still let in Verstappen
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Verstappen overtook Norris at Silverstone
Another significant sign that after two years of near-total domination, Red Bull were no longer clearly favourites to win on any given weekend. That Verstappen even finished second at a rain-hit Silverstone between Hamilton – who claimed an emotional first win in 57 races – and third-placed Norris was again more a testament to his own driving and sharp team strategy rather than being about any pace advantage his RB20 now possessed.
By contrast, Norris and McLaren were left with more regrets around strategy and decision-making. This time after they were undercut by Hamilton for the race lead in the switch to slicks in a costly pit stop that also saw them fit the soft, rather than the medium, compound tyre for the drying closing laps.
Verstappen, running the more durable hard tyre, caught the McLaren rapidly and took second away from Norris with four laps to go, a result which meant the Dutchman left the weekend with a season-high championship lead of 84 points.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 255-171 NORRIS
Hungarian GP: Norris misses out on win after team orders saga
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Listen to the heated radio messages exchanged after the Hungarian Grand Prix race start
This was the weekend at which McLaren finally put it all together to dominate, but their superb pace was overshadowed by a bizarre team orders saga, which Norris came out on the wrong side of.
Norris took pole in a McLaren front-low lockout but was overtaken off the line by team-mate Piastri. The Australian appeared to be heading for his maiden grand prix victory until Norris retook the lead as a result of McLaren pitting the Brit first at the final round of stops to protect him from an undercut from Hamilton.
Norris led on the final stint and with Piastri powerless to pass him, initially ignored orders to give the lead back to his team-mate. Amid a barrage of guilt-tripping messages over team radio, Norris finally relinquished the lead with three laps to go.
Verstappen started third and would only finish fifth after a late collision with Hamilton, but would ultimately be relieved that McLaren chose to stop Norris from taking the win.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 265-189 NORRIS
Belgian GP: Norris fails to take advantage of Verstappen penalty
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Norris was left despondent after finishing sixth at the Belgian Grand Prix
Verstappen was put on the back foot in Spa by his need for a new power unit, which would result in him starting from 11th on the grid despite topping qualifying.
Most of the pre-race focus was on whether he would have enough pace to come through the field, with many seeing Norris – starting from fourth – as the favourite for victory. It turned out neither had the pace to win, with Norris’ hopes dashed by another poor start that saw him forced onto the gravel and down to seventh.
It was Mercedes who took the chequered flag in a surprise one-two, before Russell’s disqualification saw Hamilton inherit victory.
Verstappen would finish fourth, a place ahead of Norris, and ultimately emerge satisfied with having increased his championship lead despite the grid penalty.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 277-199 NORRIS
Dutch GP: Norris delivers statement win on Verstappen’s home turf
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Norris regained the lead at the Dutch GP after a successful overtake on Verstappen
Following the sport’s summer break, a refreshed Norris made full use of McLaren’s latest upgrade package to deliver a statement victory at Verstappen’s home race.
Norris beat his rival to pole by almost half a second and went on to win the race by 22 seconds, silencing the Verstappen’s orange-clad supporters in Zandvoort.
The fact Verstappen that was able to beat Leclerc and Piastri to second ensured Norris’ points gain didn’t quite reflect his stunning margin of victory.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 295-225 NORRIS
Italian GP: Norris vs Piastri II as McLaren miss 1-2 chance
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Oscar Piastri overtook his McLaren teammate Norris as he moved into the lead on the opening lap of the Italian Grand Prix
With Red Bull’s growing struggles laid bare amid a difficult weekend around high-speed Monza, a virtuoso performance from Leclerc in front of a delighted Tifosi meant McLaren failed to fully capitalise on the championship leaders’ woes.
For the second time in four races Norris headed an all-McLaren front row in qualifying but, just like on the previous occasion in Hungary, the Briton was swiftly overtaken by team-mate Piastri at the start – although this time the strong-armed nature of the Australian’s overtake on his title-chasing team-mate did raise eyebrows.
Norris lost momentum as a result of the sister McLaren’s move and was overtaken by Leclerc too in an opening series of corners that would prove costly. In the end, Leclerc got Piastri too courtesy of a brilliantly-executed one-stop strategy as Ferrari’s pit wall outfoxed McLaren’s. With Verstappen only finishing sixth, Norris’ third place and fastest lap saw him pull a useful eight points back on the Dutchman’s title lead – but it surely should have been more.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 303-241 NORRIS
Azerbaijan GP: From disaster to delight for Lando amid Max struggle
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A potentially huge moment in the championship as Norris passed title rival Verstappen and finished in P4 after starting the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in P15
It wasn’t a win, and it actually wasn’t even a podium, but beating Verstappen to fourth place in Baku still felt like a standout result for Norris after a rollercoaster weekend that had briefly threatened to completely derail his title charge.
With Verstappen unusually off form, despite Red Bull’s car looking capable of challenging for the win this time in the hands of a belatedly on-form Perez, Norris’ big chance of gaining more significant championship ground appeared gone when untimely yellow flags saw him drop out in the first stage of qualifying in a car capable of the front row.
But starting 15th, nine places behind Verstappen, Norris used that strong McLaren pace to fight back through the field in an impressively well-judged drive. He then caught and passed his rival with two laps to eventually claim what would become fourth when Perez and Sainz collided on the final lap.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 313-254 NORRIS
Singapore GP: Runaway Norris ratchets up the title chase
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Norris cruised to victory at the Singapore Grand Prix
Another statement win from Norris and McLaren, this time on a Singapore circuit where the race is often decided by narrow margins. But that certainly wasn’t the case this time. Although Verstappen was back on form around Marina Bay after his off-colour Baku and re-emerged as Norris’ closest challenger, even the world champion had no answer to the McLaren’s stunning pace here.
Norris took pole by two tenths of a second and then won the race by a mammoth 21-second margin, having at times enjoyed a lap-time advantage of 1s over Verstappen in the middle phase of the race.
While the dominant Norris may have missed out on the weekend’s clean sweep and a handy extra point when RB’s Daniel Ricciardo, running last at the time in what turned out to be his final GP for the team, controversially pitted in the closing stages to fit fresh tyres and take the fastest lap away from the Briton, it was as otherwise as perfect and dominant a weekend as you could get.
Verstappen’s once-mighty title lead was now down to a less-comfortable 52 points with six rounds – including three Sprints – and 180 points still to play for.
POINTS: VERSTAPPEN 331-279 NORRIS
Remaining races live on Sky Sports F1
- United States GP – October 18-20 (Sprint)
- Mexico City Grand Prix – October 25-27
- Sao Paulo Grand Prix – November 1-3 (Sprint)
- Las Vegas Grand Prix – November 22-24
- Qatar Grand Prix – November 29-December 1 (Sprint)
- Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – December 6-8
Just six races remain in Formula 1 2024 and the season resumes with the United States Grand Prix in Austin from October 18-20, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream every F1 race and more with a NOW Sports Month Membership – No contract, cancel anytime
Sourse: skysports.com
